As indicated above, preamp is Conrad-Johnson.
The psychological factor
Since I got a new amplifier a while ago, I have hesitated putting the volume control on the preamp past 12 o’clock because that was never a good choice with previous amps. I was afraid I would overload the system. I now find that factor was depriving me of the best sound I could obtain.
Placing it now at 12 or above, I’m now finally enjoying what the amp is truly capable of.
I wonder if anyone else has experienced anything like that.
Placing it now at 12 or above, I’m now finally enjoying what the amp is truly capable of.
I wonder if anyone else has experienced anything like that.
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- 39 posts total
Look, you turn it up as loud as you like. Who cares about the position of the volume control. If you can not get to the volume you want then you need a more powerful amp, one with a higher input sensitivity or a preamp with more output. If that does not do it throw the whole mess away and start over but be prepared to spend at least three times the money. |
The volume control on every system has a sweet spot or sweet zone where the music in your room to your ears sounds best. It can change slightly from recording to recording or even from genre to genre. The numbers on the dial are merely reference point so you can find that place again and are otherwise pretty meaningless. |
rvpiano, I have AHB2 and use it at the lowest gain settings (Pro-level) as recommended by Benchmark (with DAC3 HGC). The whole idea is to move as much gain as possible to preamp (quieter environment) from power amp (noisier environment), not to mention less (percentage wise) electrical noise pickup on ICs between the two. As for psychological factor - I like my max power to be around 2 O'Clock to be sure it will cover even very quiet records. 3 O'Clock makes me feel uneasy. |
If only there were some memorable way of showing just how irrelevant the numbers on the volume control are.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xgx4k83zzc |
- 39 posts total